Condition & Repairs

Here are various blog resources related to the condition of a property and any repairs and alterations required. Whether it's a reactive roof repair, pro-active maintenance plan, or carefully-chosen contractor - these help explain how to effectively keep properties in the right condition.

The other week the severe wind Doris caused all kinds of property problems. If anything is particularly loose at a property, then these weather conditions will unfortunately bring out the worst and cause all kinds of damage.

Often it’s obvious building-fabric elements like parts of the roof or cladding, but also those parts you wouldn’t automatically expect like windows and doors as they are opened or closed. In addition there are external land areas, for example boundary fences and trees and vegetation.

As with other extreme weather scenarios, there is a knack to focusing on what is needed during the event in addition to dealing with the aftermath afterwards. Therefore here are a few pointers to bear in mind for...

I have received another phone call this week on a water leak problem, one of many that appear this time of year. Every case needs looking at carefully to sift out the true facts, the right responsibilities under leases and documentation, and the best practical solution.

In this scenario, it is a modern office unit under 10 years old with roof leaks. The commercial tenant has sought quotes from a roofer to resolve, and it’s not cheap – not only might there be re-laying issues of the roof, but even if it is just clearing blocked gutters, access to reach this will be expensive and cumbersome with cherry pickers and maybe even scaffolding.

So the tenant has quite rightly asked the question, why can’t the landlord cover this...

This time of year brings a whole host of water leaks into play, a lot coming of course from rain and the weather elements. This doesn’t stop other leaks still happening though, and must be remembered when diagnosing a problem.

A Sudden Example

A scenario last month brought this all to light. A phone call was received regarding a damp patch on the outside wall of one flat above another in a small block, and a keen letting agent from the flat below wanting the management company of the block ‘to sort’. To make matters worse, they had a new tenant move in a few days later to then spot a serious leak from the ceiling above into the kitchen area, not a great start for a new tenant having to dot saucepans around to catch these...